Former pacer Steve Harmison has urged England Test team captain Ben Stokes to snub IPL 2023 so that he can be fully fit for this year’s home Ashes series.
Stokes has been struggling with a knee issue and that was evident during the recently-concluded Test series against New Zealand.
The England captain had said that he would be playing in the IPL, however, Harmison feels Stokes should miss this year’s edition.
“This guy has got a really high pain threshold,” said Harmison. “Too high, that is probably the problem. But this [knee injury] is restricting his movement, big time. We’ve been watching it and seeing the demise of it this innings and this was the first time that he’s [shown] the rest of the general public.
“I think there’s some brave decisions to be made because Ben Stokes is so important, so crucial, to England’s chances of winning the Ashes. And I thought he might have gone to the IPL, played the Ashes and then fixed his knee. [But] looking at this, I think that’s impossible now.
“I think a big conversation between the medical team, Rob Key, Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes, is how do we get you fit for June? Forget any other cricket, because that is the most important thing at this minute in time.”
